I thought men rocking nail polish was old news (see Dwyane Wade) but the internet has been buzzing since Snoop Dogg posted a picture on Instagram engaging in his favorite green hobby and showing off his French manicure.

Maybe the style of manicure is a new phenomenon on men, but we know plenty of guys who take pride in polishing their nails and have been doing it for years.

It’s important to me that a man pay attention to his nails, keeping them neatly groomed and manicured. Polishes (from clear to darker colors) are optional and not cause for concern.

However, a French manicure pushes the boundaries of what’s acceptable male polish to some people and in Snoop Dogg’s case, it had tongues wagging. His picture received so much attention on Instagram alone it was at 30K likes at the time of this post.

As long as it’s neat and understated, I’m all for men with manicures. Nail art is another conversation though.

What about you, Clutchettes? What do you think of Snoop Dogg’s manicure? Would you embrace French manicures as a new male polish trend?

You are conflating male/female aesthetic expectations with gender equality. Women can do everything men can do (aesthetically)? So, women can stop removing hair from their faces, legs, under arms, etc. and still be considered feminine? Wear men’s clothing and not be considered lesbian? I don’t think so. For the record, I am a woman and a man could not touch me with painted nails, just like he couldn’t kiss me wearing lipstick. And Snoop has been ridiculous for a loooong time.

You have every right to decide what kinds of style or fashion or adornment YOU consider attractive – and if your comments had been about your personal preferences, I would have not disputed you. (I’m “recognizing”, not “granting” any rights here, btw.. just want to be precise…) You even have the right to decide that you prefer your partners to have a particular ethnic heritage and skin pigmentation.

My objection to your arguments here involves your support for – and your effort to speak on behalf of – society’s “aesthetic expectations”… and your obvious comfort with the idea of judging someone (“CONSIDERED lesbian..”) based on how they look. This is particularly heartbreaking to me since you have identified yourself as black, so your nearest ancestors dealt with a form of “aesthetic expectations” that was expressed by signs saying “coloreds only” – marriage license “blood tests” designed to prevent “miscegenation” – black men murdered for daring to speak to white women…

I KNOW, that compared to the experience of blacks in the USA, the prejudices against men wearing nail color are inconsequential. But they are both prejudices, the difference is a matter of degree. The magnitude of the difference is roughly equivalent to the difference between the 9/11 WTC murders, and fishing without a license – but that does not justify prejudice.

My point is that NO prejudice is acceptable by our society. I like to paint my nails. If YOU find that unattractive, that’s really OK – but don’t claim that society is upholding some noble virtue by its arbitrary definition of nail color as “feminine”, its scorn and ridicule of men who adopt this “feminine” fashion and its assumption that these men are “probably gay”. “Feminine” is a personality trait, not a property of inanimate objects like paint – and I believe that NOBODY is purely “masculine” or “feminine”, we all have some of each – and that’s a good thing. “Gay” is a sexual preference, and there is nothing wrong with being gay. So, neither “feminine” nor “gay” are derogatory terms – and it is prejudicial and bigoted to use them as derogatives. When you participate in the scorn, ridicule and assumption, YOU ARE PROMOTING PREJUDICE AND INTOLERANCE. That is all.

SAMURAI36

Steve, there is much about your post that I (& others, I’m sure) find quite disagreeable.

Firstly, it is erroneous to say that she cannot speak for society at large, if A) she is a member of said society, & B) her view on the matter is a prevailing one.

The reality is, as is demonstrated in this discussion, you & those like you, that share your view & preference, are in the gross minority. Hers is the privilege of right; yours is the burden of acceptance. Until or unless society changes, then you are operating on the fringes of the general social ideals.

Second, “feminine” & “masculine” are not personality traits, as you erroneously refer to them. They are quantifiable biological, scientific, & even spiritual/metaphysical concepts. The fact that you have to go to great lengths to deny/ignore these truths in order to accept the deviant “style” you have chosen, says quite a bit.

And lastly, she is not promoting anything of the sort. The is merely promoting her right to express her feelings on the matter. She has not told you or any one else that you cannot wear male polish, or tried to restrict you in any way from doing so. Nor has she mistreated you for your choice.

But just as it is your right to this practice, it is also her right to vocalize her disapproval of it. She doesn’t owe you anything. She doesn’t have to accept it, nor you. No one does.

Nakia – I owe you an apology, some of what I wrote above is intended for “SAMURAI36”. To answer your questions directly:
“Women can do everything men can do (aesthetically)?”
Yes.

“women can stop removing hair from their faces, legs, under arms, etc. and still be considered feminine?”
Yes. As I define “feminine” – caring, nurturing, generous, kind, friendly, peaceful, artistic, graceful, elegant, and virtuous – the presence or absence of body hair does not influence my consideration of a person’s femininity.

“Wear men’s clothing and not be considered lesbian?”
Yes. As I define “lesbian” – “a woman who is sexually attracted only to other women” – a woman’s clothing does not indicate her sexual preference. If I saw a woman flirting with another woman, I would assume that she might be lesbian – and I would admire her courage in openly defying society’s expectations and facing its scorn and derision.

“Second, “feminine” & “masculine” are not personality traits, as you erroneously refer to them. They are quantifiable biological, scientific, & even spiritual/metaphysical concepts. The fact that you have to go to great lengths to deny/ignore these truths in order to accept the deviant “style” you have chosen, says quite a bit.”

OK. What “biological” aspect of nail paint makes it “feminine” (every bottle I own has two little balls, I call them “testicles”… ;)? What biological aspect of your fingernails makes them “feminine” or “masculine”? (they are pure keratin, there is no DNA within fingernails – a scientist could not distinguish between a man’s and a woman’s nail clippings. In German, “fingernail” is a feminine noun… and “toenail” is a masculine noun – even when “he” is on a woman’s foot (or, maybe I have that backwards…)? What “scientific” property of nail paint makes it “feminine” (I checked some ingredient labels – there is no estrogen or progesterone in the formulas)? What “spiritual concept” is inherent to nail paint which makes it “feminine”? What “metaphysical concept” makes nail paint “feminine”? Those concepts – your “truths” – have no relationship whatsoever to nail color. If they did, you would have to also say that a woman WITHOUT nail color is “masculine”.

You really have said nothing except “Society says nail color is feminine, because society says it is”. I say that is a prejudice in society, nothing more – and when faced with a prejudice, my choices are: support it by conforming to it, support it by pretending it isn’t there, oppose it by supporting those who defy it, or oppose it by defying it myself. Galileo was convicted of heresy (speaking contrary to the majority’s beliefs) and threatened with execution – for saying that the Earth is round and orbits the Sun, when the majority believed the opposite.

WHAT IF “this is feminine” is as popular a belief – and as inaccurate – as “Earth is flat, and is fixed, motionless, at the center of the Universe”? IF there is no inherent femininity to nail color, then the phenomenon of men wearing it wouldn’t be “feminization”, and just maybe, it might not destroy society if men started wearing it on a regular basis.

The only “great lengths” I have had to go to, to accept my own preference for painting my nails, is to see nail paint for what it really is – merely, only, just paint. OTOH, to justify your prejudice against men wearing nail color, you have claimed “feminization” and “emasculation” of men, predicted the destruction of society (Really?), and referenced (without making any logical connection) a bunch of nebulous concepts. Who is going to the greater lengths here?

MY masculinity is secure enough that it is not threatened by a few drops of paint, nor is it defined by the prejudiced opinions of others. If the WHOLE WORLD saw my nails painted and thought less of me for it, that would not change who I am – not one bit. I wear my nail color with boldness, confidence and defiance, secure in my knowledge that it does not “make me” anything, it does not define me any more than the people who see me define me.

I see the alternative as timid conformity to arbitrary societal rules, following the herd, letting others think for me and tell me what’s OK for me to wear, afraid of invoking the herd’s disapproval, dependent upon the herd’s confirmation and validation of my masculinity. No thanks – that doesn’t sound like masculinity at all.

To me, boldness, confidence, independence, security, and defiance are all very masculine personality traits. Cowardice, compliance, submission, dependence, insecurity and fear are all unmanly personality traits. Compassion, nurturing, empathy, kindness, peacefulness, generosity, and creativity are all “feminine” personality traits. But, even here the labels “masculine” and “feminine” are arbitrary – any person can have any of the traits listed above, we all have each to some degree, the labels merely help us to understand how each of us balances the masculine and feminine aspects of our personalities.

I think a major problem in society is polarization – the idea that one must be exclusively masculine or feminine in accordance with their anatomy, the idea that masculine and feminine exist in opposition and hostility to each other, and the idea that it is “bad”, “dangerous”, or “societally destructive” for a member of either gender to express any traits of the other gender.

Ultimately, doesn’t society have bigger problems to deal with than dictating how people decorate themselves?

SAMURAI36

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20070805092509AAN0MDm
You should stop with the pseudo-science. Nails themselves do not contain DNA, but the base of the nail does. Same with hair.
As far as what’s in nail polish, there may not be estrogen in it, but there definitely is formaldehyde in it–something that is grossly unhealthy for both men & women. But that’s the case for most cosmetic products: hair products, make up, lipstick, perfumes, etc.
Didn’t your German scientists tell you that?
Speaking of, the fact that you continue to mention Germans, Galileo, & other European notions, such as “the world is flat”, (you realize that Africans & Asians knew the truth of this, before your precious white folks did?) explains alot of things about you, including your deviation from the natural order.
Your ignorance of spiritual & metaphsyical concepts is appalling. These are not “my truths” as you so ignorantly call them.http://www.yijing.nl/i_ching/trigrams/bigpattern.htm
Color, & how the brain perceives it, corresponds to the EM spectrum. Africans & Asians were intimately familiar with this, & they incorporated this knowledge into their cultural practices.
There are masculine & feminine aspects to the human brain. Certain colors appeal to those aspects.
The Chakras correspond to colors, masculine & feminine. Ying & Yang, light & dark: masculine & feminine.
Protons & electrons: masculine & feminine.
Get your head out of Galileo’s butt, & stop sniffing that nail polish, & perhaps you might gain a better understanding of what I am speaking of here.

@ SAMURAI36 – I will agree with you, that I am “deviating from” or defying the “natural order” by painting my fingernails – because within the natural order, nobody’s fingernails grow with paint already applied, and the nails are not produced with colors (unlike hair and feathers). Of course, everybody who paints their nails – male or female – is defying the natural order by placing a substance on them which does not occur there naturally. It could be said that indigenous peoples who weave feather headdresses or wear animal furs are also defying the natural order – perhaps “defiance of the natural order” is one of the things that makes us human.

As for formaldehyde – nail lacquers do not “definitely” contain formaldehyde. Since about 2006, most prominent brands of nail polish have been advertised as being “3-Free”, referring to the absence of formaldehyde, toluene and dibutyl pthalate from their formulas. Some advertise “4-Free”, which adds “no camphor” to the list. Off-brands, especially those produced overseas, sometimes contain these chemicals.

Thank you for the link to the “Colorpattern of the trigrams” webpage. I already considered green and blue to be masculine colors, and I am pleased to see on your source that red is also identified as masculine.

Thank you also for the link to the Yahoo Answers page “Do fingernails contain genetic material?”. Will you agree that the only part of the fingernail that people paint is the hard nail plate, they do not paint the living cells underneath? When I speak of the characteristics of fingernails, I refer to the hard nail plate, not the cells that manufacture it – in the same way that my descriptions of the properties of an automobile are not descriptions of the facility where it was made. Based on the description in the source you cite, I restate my claim, modified for clarity: The part of the fingernail that people actually paint, contains no DNA and is therefore indistinguishable between women and men.

I am intrigued by your mention of “Yin and Yang”, and your point that “There are masculine & feminine aspects to the human brain.” You seem to be echoing my point that:
“I think a major problem in society is polarization – the idea that one must be exclusively masculine or feminine in accordance with their anatomy, the idea that masculine and feminine exist in opposition and hostility to each other, and the idea that it is “bad”, “dangerous”, or “societally destructive” for a member of either gender to express any traits of the other gender.”

It is obvious to me that we will not agree on the basic question here. That is OK. I know that many people do not accept the idea that men can wear nail color as men without betraying their masculinity. I think you would be surprised by how many people I’ve met who DO accept – even compliment – my nail color. I’ve also met people who reacted negatively at first, but after some time and thought, they recognized the inherent prejudices in their reactions and they discarded those prejudices. I believe the world becomes a little better – and society becomes a little stronger – whenever anyone finds and discards one of their prejudices. I hope, but doubt, that I will live to see a world without prejudice… but I am confident that I will see nail color in widespread use by both genders, and to me, that is a step forward.

SAMURAI36

@Steve:

Much of your responses seem to be based on trying to justify your reasonings. Why? You seem to be seeking validation, rather than sepf-acceptance. If you like what you see when you look in the mirror, if your spouse likes it, if you get all these compliments as you say, then what does it matter what anyone else says?

It just It seems as though you are trying to push an agenda here.

I clearly do not agree with your seemingly Eurocentric approach to nature & science. For instance, you list peacocks as an example, which is not the best one. To my knowledge, peacocks do not pain their feathers, they are born with them that way, so they are following the natural laws.

You mentioned people wearing animal skins, as if this is a deviation from nature. There are animals that take on the outer shells of other creatures. Crustaceans, for instance.

I do not find external augmentation to be necessarily unnatural, per se. Lots of creatures sharpen their horns or claws against trees or stones. But they are doing it for utilitarian purposes, & not cosmetic ones; to protect themselves from the elements, to defend themselves against predators, or to become better ones.

Personally, I am not a fan of cosmetic products that don’t serve a hygienical or perhaps even ceremonial (cultural or spiritual) purpose. But I respect women’sright to wear it, within the feminine cultural paradigm.

Arguing the ingredients of nail polish seems futile. Even if formaldehyde is not present (how sad that you take these white folks’ word for it; they’ve been known to lie about what’s in the stuff they make before), that doesn’t mean that nothing else in the bottle isn’t toxic.

They say it’s”3-free”, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t contain another set of toxic chemicals. It just may not contain the set that you are familiar with. White folks are good with that verbal sleight of hand, & Negroes just eat it up. Anything to help you sleep at night, I suppose.

You seem to be misinterpreting the concept of Yin & Yang, which is not surprising, since you seem to interpret much of the world thru a Eurocentric lens. The Tao is not about polarization, but what you are failing to realize, is that the answer to that is not deviation either.

The Tao is about recognizing the complementary aspects of all things, while also recognizing & honoring the boundaries between them. There is nothing in what you are doing that represents that, in regards to painting your nails.

That much is clear, when you think that masculine & feminine are preconceived notions.

Also, you continue to talk about “prejudice” & you do so erroneously. The root word of “prejudice” is “pre-judge”. I have not prejudged anything nor anyone. I have made a judgment based on the knowledge that I have on the subject. Nothing you’ve presented has swayed that knowledge.

A wise man once said: “do what you want, & say what you feel… Those that matter, won’t mind, & those that mind, don’t matter.”

Samurai: In your last comment you kindly explained that “prejudice” is derived from “pre judge” – and claimed that you have not pre-judged here.

But your first comment on this column says:

“Wow, we are living in a world where the man’s man is slowly becoming a dinosaur, and the homo male is now the standard.”

“homo” is a derogatory reference to people who have a homosexual orientation. But this column wasn’t about – doesn’t even mention – anybody’s sexual orientation. The column was about Snoop and his finger paint. So, in the context you used “homo”, you were clearly demeaning the men who would wear nail color by claiming – in a derogatory way – that they must be gay. It is impossible for you to have specific information about the sexual preferences of every man who wears nail color. So, you judged men like me BEFORE you knew anything about our sexual preferences. “Judging… before..” is “pre-judging” – and that is prejudice.

You have insisted that you have the right to say anything you want – and you do – but that right does not negate the fact that what you did say, was prejudicial.

I can not claim to know the sexual orientation of every man who wears nail polish. But I know my own orientaion, and it is not dictated, defined or displayed by my nail color. I also know of several male celebrities who wear nail color and who I can assume are either straight or bi (i.e., not gay) based on the fact that they are either married to, or have had LTRs with, women:
Johnny Depp has 2 kids with Vanessa Paredes (7 year LTR)
Seal was married to Heidi Klum
Len Wiseman is married to Kate Beckinsale
Dean McDermott is married to Tori Spelling
Cash Warren is married to Jessica Alba
David Beckham is married to Victoria Beckham
Steven Tyler is twice-married, and father to Liv Tyler
Ozzy Osbourne is married to Sharon Osbourne
etc..

Of course, I could make a list of gay men who wear/wore nail color (and, a longer list of gay men who don’t..) – but that list isn’t relevant to my dispute with your claim that “a man wearing french tips” somehow equates to “homo male is becoming the standard”.

Also, I never said that the Tao uses Yin and Yang to describe polarization – I am pretty sure that the idea of Yin/Yang is that everybody has some of each, masculine AND feminine, within them, and that the process of self-improvement involves recognizing, accepting and balancing both forces in their lives. Where does the insult “homo” fit into the Tao?

SAMURAI36

@ Steve:

1) You continue to prove my point about your Eurocentric-influenced perceptions. With the exception of Seal (whom I will address momentarily), your entire list consists of soft, feminine, weirdo, Hollywood white men. Do you know the European, Greco-Roman origins of homosexuality?
2) You do realize, that Hollywood is notorious for its closet homosexual lifestyle, yes?

3) Just because these men were/are married, does not lean they are incapable of engaging is homo/bisexual behavior. Ever heard of being on the down-low? Again, refer back to point #2.

4) It’s sad that Seal is the only example of a black man that you could cite here. nd even he is not that great of an example… Like you, he seems to be totally immersed in European culture, & hasn’t seemed to publicly embrace his African heritage, since he left the Mother continent.

These are your examples??? Is this the type of man you aspire to be like? Where are your examples of the strong, virile, upright black male that we need more of in our communities, rather than the weak, slack-jawed, round-shouldered, soft-voiced, nail polish wearing men, that we see far too many of?

As for the Tao, indeed it recognizes that we all have aspects of the opposite gender in us. How could we not? We were birthed from both sexes.

However, the Tao does NOT condone homosexuality, nor does it condone the notion of the emasculated man, that you seen to be pushing for.

I can almost guarantee, that the ancient Taoists of China were not wearing fingernail polish, or doing anything remotely feminine

Samurai… “The Tao does not condone homosexuality” – OK… aside from you, who here is talking about homosexuality? I thought we were talking about our fingernails, not our sexual preferences. The only thing I have ever said here about homosexuality is that sexual preference is NOT RELATED to nail color. Sort of like how skin color is not related to intelligence. Your insistence that nail color has some connection with sexual orientation, is every bit as prejudiced, intolerant and bigoted as any redneck’s claim that a person’s skin color indicates their intelligence. (And, the argument that “many people share my view”, proves only that many people are prejudiced, it does not prove the existence of a real connection between nail paint and sexual orientation.)

Incidentally… you keep using “Eurocentric” and “white folks” as derogatories.. displaying additional prejudices on your part.

I will confess that I aspire to date (more of a wish, really) Kate Beckinsale, Jessica Alba, Heidi Klum, Vanessa Paredes, and/or Victoria Beckham – but that is as far as my “aspir[ation] to be like” the men I listed, goes. I don’t aspire to be like anybody else – I aspire to be a unique individual with my own unique style. Maybe that’s the real point here. You have been arguing that “real men” should submit and conform to a social order (you called it “natural order”) that prohibits some people from decorating themselves with nail paint solely on account of their gender. I have argued that THIS PART of the social order is sexist, oppressive, and serves no legitimate social purpose. You have been implicitly arguing for a definition of “masculinity” that depends on the approval of the herd – that a male who does everything his buddies do, fears doing anything he doesn’t see them doing, never thinks for himself, never questions what he is told is “OK” – is “masculine”.

Believe me, I understand – IN YOUR MIND (and anyone who shares your prejudice), my nail color is “feminine”, “emasculating” and “makes me less of a man”. That’s OK. What you fail to understand is that my reality is not defined by what’s in your mind. My masculinity is not threatened by your disapproval. I don’t judge my value as a person by my willingness to conform to society’s BS expectations.

As for “other black male examples” – I didn’t list Dwyane Wade or Snoop because I don’t know their relationship status and didn’t care to look it up. I also didn’t list Snoop, because that would have been redundant (since the column was originally about Snoop’s french tips, and whether male polish will be a new trend)

SAMURAI36

@ Steve:

I notice that you cherry-pick the points & statements of mine that you wish to respond to. I made it quite clear, what the Tao does & does not condone
But in case my position was not clear enough: homosexuality, & other acts are deviations from the natural order. And yes, this includes men wearing male polish, cross dressing, etc.
Now, does that all these things are on the same tier or level? Of course not. Just as the person who eats donuts or cookies or ice cream a few times a week, is not the same severity, as say, the person who smokes crack or pops X-pills. They are both examples of someone putting something very unhealthy in their bodies; dough, grease, sugar & formaldehyde are just as toxic as cocaine, formaldehyde & other chemicals in drugs. One will kill you faster than the other, but that doesn’t make the “slower” act any less significant.
You seem to think that there is no natural order to anything, as you superimposed “social order” upon natural order. Yeah, you have fun with that.
Also, it’s a falsehood that our heritage is not directly linked to how people process info, which is all “intelligence” is. But, you seek to be in the dark about your African heritage (should I even be assuming that you are Black at all?). People with melanin tend to be more right-brained than people with less melanin, who tend to be more left-brained. Since the pineal gland in our brains are responsible for creating melanin in the first place, the connection between the two is quite academic. But this isn’t something your Galileo, & the other ignorant, “they thought the world was flat” white scholars would know, so it’s no surprise that you don’t know it.
For that matter, you spend alot of time regurgitating post-modern Eurocentric ideas.
For example:
“I don’t aspire to be like anybody else – I aspire to be a unique individual with my own unique style.”
How absurd. Everybody aspires to be like someone, at least to some extent. I strive to be like my father, who was hard working, & a great provider for his family. Christians strive to be more Christ-Like. In Africa, our people strive to be more like our ancestors, who were wise & strong. What, you never had a role model in your life? Someone you looked up to?
It’s obvious to me that you haven’t, aside from the white people & the one sellout Negro that you aspire to be like. Which is obviously the case, lest you would not have named Heidi Klum, & these other god-awful white women that you confessed to desire, the same as Seal did.
However your response that basically amounted to “why not? Johnny Dep & Seal & Ozzy do it too!” shows that you do take cues from others.
You would do well to admit to yourself, that you view the world thru European eyes. Everything you have said here demonstrates that, & as such, painting your nails is the least of your issues.
Another example: using the term “herd”. Another term a white man would say. Where you see a group of animals (which is all a herd is), I see a community.
The fact that you have deviated from said community, & the natural order that they strive to uphold, is definitely a symptom of the European mindset that you seem to suffer from.
Why on earth would you list Dwayne Wade & Snoop as examples??? I asked for examples of STRONG black men. Neither of these men fit that description, in my eyes–Snoop even less so; the dude has been perm his hair since his days with the Dogg Pound, so it should come as no surprise to anyone that he’d be getting his nails done too. That is what women do, don’t they? Get their hair & nails “did”, all in the same trip. Snoop’s womanhood has been bursting to come out for years. His high pitched voice, subtle feminine movements (neck rolling, & switching when he walks), it should come as no surprise to anyone, it if were revealed that he was gay, or at least bi.
Also, you throw around words like “prejudiced & bigoted” in virtually every one of your responses, as if they have some sort of market value. I can assure you, these words mean nothing to me in the slightest. No more than me citing various native cultural concepts apparently means anything to you. Good thing more people than just is are reading this, or our efforts would be am exercise in futility.
It seems to me, that you are seeking some sort of acceptance or validation for your deviant behavior. Er go, anyone that doesn’t agree with your practice is a “bigot” much in the same vein that anyone that doesn’t agree with the premise of the homosexual lifestyle is somehow “homophobic” (another grammatical non-sequitur used as a counterattack against those that don’t agree with the deviance). Or when people say “oh, you’re just a hater”.
I’ve already shown you that I’m not pre-judging anything; I do not have a phobia (which is a clinical fear) of homosexuals, & the things that you & others do, do not evoke an irrational emotional response (i.e. “hate”) within me.
None of these terms you or anyone else throw out, have any power over me.
You may want to take some time out to ponder why what other people think & feel about what you do, has so much power over you.

Samurai – the assumption that I am Black, would be inaccurate. The eyes through which I see the world are 1/4 Italian, 1/4 Russian, plus Hungarian, Czech, Greek and Anglo-Saxon. But, I don’t believe that the value of a philosophy or scientific theory is dependent upon where it (or its proponent, or its hearer) originates. The ONLY reason I mentioned Galileo was to provide an example of how the “prevailing opinion” in society is sometimes very wrong.

You claim that you have “already shown you that I’m not pre-judging anything” – but you merely SAID that. What you’ve shown is a definite bias against “homo”s, “white folks”, “sellout negroes”, men who don’t conform to your standard of “strong, virile” manhood, and “Eurocentric” science and philosophy.

I differentiate between “social order” and “natural order”, because I see very little in human life that corresponds to the way Nature intends for us to live. You were born naked – and unless you pick your clothes fully formed from a clothing tree, all of what you wear is artificial (made by man, not made by nature). Most of the food that most people eat is cooked – in the natural order, foods are uncooked. In the natural order, males of many species have evolved brightly colored or decorative features – the lion’s mane, the tails of peacocks and roosters, the tusks of bull elephants and the horns of bulls, bucks and rams… Your only point against brightly decorated male humans, was that the natural examples I gave, serve to attract females – but among humans, brightly colored male nails won’t be attractive to most women. To that, I’d add “YES, to the extent that they share your prejudice.” You’ve said that it is not “natural” for men to wear nail color, I say that “natural” isn’t relevant here, because it isn’t “natural” for ANY human to paint their nails.

It is not natural, but it is customary, for women to paint their nails – and you have no major objection to that.
It is not natural, and it is not customary, for men to paint their nails – and you obviously find this highly offensive. So, I conclude that your objection is based not on violation of “natural order” but on violation of “customs” – in other words, “social order”.

You speak of our different perceptions of groups – “herd” versus “community”. I recognize “community” – it literally means “united in common”, and to me, a community is characterized by the mutual respect, cooperation and fairness of its members toward each other. When I see people working together for a common purpose, respecting individual differences and even learning from each other’s unique attributes and points of view – that’s when I see “community”. BUT – when I see a social structure where individuals are expected to conform, where they are intimidated from thinking for themselves and required to submit to the group’s collective will, where people blindly follow a perceived consensus without ever questioning the merit of what they are expected to do – then, I don’t see a community, I see a herd – I see people ACTING LIKE sheep.

Do you own your body, or does your community own it? If your body is the property of your group, then the group has the right to tell you how to decorate it. I own my body. I accept no group’s “authority” to dictate how I will decorate my OWN body, and I am personally offended by any suggestion that any group has a legitimate right to expect me to conform to its aesthetic mandates. The enforcement of that oppressive mandate takes many forms – one of them is ridicule and derision, “(if you don’t conform) you must be a homo”. That is how your prejudice (nail color + man = “homo”) is offensive to me, and should be offensive to anyone.

SAMURAI36

@ Steve:

“Samurai – the assumption that I am Black, would be inaccurate. The eyes through which I see the world are 1/4 Italian, 1/4 Russian, plus Hungarian, Czech, Greek and Anglo-Saxon.”

Now all this makes perfect sense. Nothing about you was adding up, until you revealed this crucial piece of info about yourself. No wonder you couldn’t tell me about “any strong black men”… You simply do not know any.

And the lesson to be learned here, my Black brethren & sistren, is that there will always be those that seek to come amongst us, to infiltrate us, not for the purpose of learning about us, but to further their agenda.

As black man myself, I journey to this site dedicated to Black women, to learn more about my sisters, so that I can be a better brother to my sisters, a better king to my queens, a better protector to my nurturers.

I continue to take for granted, as do we all, that there are those that use the anonymity of the internet to disguise themselves & their agenda.

How sad it is, that we can have nothing of our own, or that we would have to ask ask individual “are you even black?” before conversing with them. However, this is a betrayal of trust that is not at all uncommon, from those the likes of this particular individual.

And with that, kind sir, I shall bid you adieu. Expect no further responses from my person on this matter.

Samurai – I admit that I didn’t come here to “learn about Black women”. I didn’t even know that this site is “dedicated to Black women”… in fact, nothing on the page I’m looking at says that it is. And, since there was no “I declare that I am Black” button to push when I posted comments, I see no “betrayal of trust” in my coming here to DEFEND MYSELF from your attack.

I came here to dispute your claim that men wearing nail color are “homo”.

You say “Nothing about you was adding up, until you revealed this crucial piece of [racial] info about yourself.” CRUCIAL? We’ve gone from “Judge, not by the color of skin, but by the content of character”, to “[your skin color is] crucial [to judging whether your comments (about body art or homosexuality) have merit]”? Is that REALLY the position you want to uphold?

But, what the hell – go ahead and declare victory, announce that it’s OK to disregard everything I said, judge my comments as invalid BASED ON THE COLOR OF MY SKIN. I’m sure Dr. King would be proud!

SAMURAI36

@ Steve:
I know I said I wouldn’t respond again, & I do plan to stick to that declaration, after I make this one exception:

How’s this for content of character: YOU ARE A LIAR.

You have been on this site for the better part of a week now, “defending yourself against my attack”, & clearly you are intelligent enough to craft long, carefully detailed arguments & rebuttal, but you aren’t smart enough to browse the site, in order to get a better understanding f who you are dealing with? You can’t tell this is a black women’s site, from all the pictures & topics about nothing but Black women???

So what… Did you just decide to wake up one day, & go on an attack-defending mission, & google “men wearing nail polish under attack”, & this site popped up under the listings? Do you go all around the internet, defending yourself?

I don’t believe you. You knew this was a black women’s site, just like you knew that I was under the impression that you were a Black man. So, me talking about “our African ancestors”, or me calling you a “sellout Negro” wasn’t a hint??

You had every opportunity to say “hey man, I’m not a black man, sellout or otherwise”. So now, you can break down every intricate percentage of Euro blood that flows thru your veins, but it never once occurred to you to say “just FYI, I’m a white guy??”

Of course not. Instead, in typical European fashion, you wanted me to continue to believe you were something that you are not.

By all means, continue to show us your true color(s), but please quit pretending that you are stupid. It’s a out as unbecoming as you acting as if I am.

This is why many Black people are mistrustful of white people. Same ol’ lies & deceptions; it never changes.

Oh, & speaking of “prejudice”, why on earth would you prejudge me, by thinking that I am a proponent of Dr. King’s ideology?? What, in anything I have said, would lead you to that ASS-umption about me? So what, all black folk believe in Dr. King’s dream? Once again, your true color(s) is showing.

Bottom line: take your snake oil (i.e. your “white” lies, & your gay nail polish), & peddle it elsewhere, white boy. In case you can’t tell, most of us here are not buying what you are selling.

So feel free to cough up a last response. Nothing you have or will say, has or will matter to me. At the end of the day, you are still just a gay white weirdo to me.
So now “Dr. King” that.

Robbie

I did not know this was a black women’s site. I saw a link in my twitter talking about us men and nail polish and here I am. Oh well. For the record, I am black, I have a black wife, and black kids. ;-) Oh and I wear nail polish. In the black community. NOT AN ISSUE.

Samurai – actually, I found your comments on this column when a friend of mine on Facebook sent me a link to it.

I never claimed that you adhere to Dr King’s philosophy. I cited King, because I respect what he taught, and (irony coming here..) because I am a member of a society in which a prevailing view is that King’s philosophy represents an appropriate standard (or at least, a goal) for human interactions, and therefore I can speak on behalf of that society to urge your compliance with that standard. (And, FWIW, you promoted the Tao in pretty much the exact same way that I promoted King’s philosophy. So what?)

I’m sorry that I missed the part where you called me a “sellout Negro” – I honestly thought you were applying that tag to Seal. FWIW, you missed the part where I referred to “YOUR heritage” instead of, say, “OUR heritage” – that should have been a clue about my race – if my race is relevant in this discussion.

NOBODY has said that you ever have to wear nail color. Nobody has said that you have to like the fact that other men wear it. Nobody has said that you must remain silent about your opinion. ALL I have said, really, is that it is none of your business – or society’s business – whether I wear nail color or not. You (by which I mean the “vast majority” that you claim agrees with you) do not own me, and have no right to dictate how I decorate my own body.

As far as the support you claim to have on this thread – I’ve noticed that nobody has stepped up to support any of your arguments here, or to dispute mine.

James

If someone doesn’t like a guy wearing polish, don’t date him. I don’t like women who wear too much makeup, smoke or wear huge hooker hoops, so I won’t date them. We all have the right to like whatever we want, but why do we have to judge those that don’t fit into our personal likes? If it doesn’t float you boat, move on.

I loveeeee Snoop but hate the nails. The manicure is not G and it’s not masculine. Basically the author is co signing that she wants a effeminate man! No man should ever get a French mani like this. A man should get a soft manicure consisting of, something he can do himself or have his significant other do. For example, clipping his nails, cleaning underneath the nails, and buffing if he wants a natural man. No woman should be attracted to any man wearing nail polish nor a French tip. Lol

Snoop dog has lost his mind!

As for as the girl saying gender doesn’t exist and women can do what men do and vice versa. See that’s the reason our men are emasculated today and the reason why many sistahs are single. We don’t live in a feminist society anymore. Women have proven their equality, let a man be a man and let a woman be a woman. I have no problem admitting men can do things that I can’t and I can do things that they can’t either.